Major US indexes end higher; Nasdaq out front, up ~1%
Utilities leads S&P 500 sector gainers; Staples weakest group
Dollar ~flat; gold up slightly; bitcoin rallies >2%; crude slips
US 10-Year Treasury yield falls to ~4.34%
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FINDING SOME FOOTING
After a slow start to the week, the Dow Industrials .DJI and S&P 500 .SPX rose for the first time in three sessions, as investors continue to try to navigate the potential tariff landscape.
President Donald
Trump issued
more tariff notices on Wednesday, this time to seven minor trading partners, as his administration attempted to move towards a deal with the European Union.
Small cap stocks continued their recent run higher, with the Russell 2000 .RUT up for the seventh time in eight sessions as investors have gravitated toward stocks that are seen as being more insulated from tariffs and likely to benefit from a Federal Reserve that may be coming closer to cutting interest rates.
Minutes from the most recent Fed meeting in June showed only "a couple" of officials said they felt interest rates could fall as soon as this month, with most still concerned about inflationary pressures from tariffs.
"It will be the battle of the 'couple' versus the 'some.' A couple could be ready to cut in July. Some won’t want to cut at all this year," said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin.
"The middle-ground occupied by the several will determine when and how much the Fed cuts."
Utilities .SPLRCL climbed 1% as the best performing of the S&P 500 sectors, led by a surge of nearly 20% in AES Corp, which was also the top performer on the benchmark S&P 500 after Bloomberg
News reported
the power provider was exploring options, including a potential sale.
Also of note, Nvidia NVDA.O shares closed up 1.8% and the company briefly eclipsed the $4 trillion market cap during the session, becoming the first public company in the world to breach that threshold, before closing the session at $3.9 trillion.
Below is your closing market snapshot:
(Chuck Mikolajczak)
*****
EARLIER ON LIVE MARKETS:
WEIGHT LOSS DRUGS UNLIKELY TO DENT MEMBERSHIP FOR PLANET FITNESS, TD COWEN SAYS CLICK HERE
TARIFF TUMULT STILL IN THE EARLY STAGES CLICK HERE
WHEN IT COMES TO RATE CUTS, SHOULD THE FED FISH OR CUT BAIT? CLICK HERE
MORTGAGE JACK-IN-THE-BOX: RATES CRANK LOWER, DEMAND GOES 'BOING!' CLICK HERE
U.S. STOCKS CLIMB AS NVIDIA BREAKS THE $4 TRILLION MARK CLICK HERE
BENCHMARK TREASURY YIELD WAITING FOR THE GAVEL TO FALL CLICK HERE
200% PHARMA TARIFFS: "RHETORIC" CLICK HERE
EUROPE BRACES FOR WORST EARNINGS IN FIVE QUARTERS CLICK HERE
BANKS DO THE HEAVY LIFTING; DAX, FTSE NEAR PEAKS CLICK HERE
EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: TRADE DEAL AWAITED, FUTURES UP CLICK HERE
TRUMP TARIFF VOLLEYS MET WITH CAUTION, NOT CHAOS CLICK HERE
Closing levels July 9 https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/mkt/gdpzbqzazpw/Pasted%20image%201752092242619.png